His wife

Nathan

It is nighttime when she helps me to the bed. It’s not the best bed in the world but much more comfortable than the mattress at the shelter.

“I will be on the couch in the lounge. Shout out if you need anything,” she says after placing a jug of water and a glass next to the me.

I grab her arm, prompting her to look at me. I never paid attention to her before. Her almond eyes are very unique, and she looks so hot in those pajamas. Maybe it’s because I have never seen her wearing something not completely covering her sensual body before. It is easy to make out her gifted bust and I can see the nipple imprints through her pajama silky top. The tight shorts give me the opportunity to see her firm thighs and butt. Damn, my wife is really hot!

“Please don’t. I will not be able to sleep peacefully knowing that you are sleeping on the couch.”

She looks suspiciously at me, and I flash her an innocent smile.

“We are married, but I swear I will not touch you. I am impotent, remember?”

To my relief she slips inside the blankets and is soon fast asleep.

I send Brian a message instructing him to look into the James guy we met earlier. I have a feeling that I am going to see a lot of him.

I am not surprised to learn that he is Amari’s ex. He cheated on her with a lot of women, including her former best friend. The best part of the report Brian sends me is the fact that the arrogant ass is actually my employee, and he has no clue.

It is midnight when I turn to my fast asleep wife. She looks so fragile yet angelic. Life has been so cruel to her, yet she still wakes up and tries to live a decent life.

Why are you so acceptive of me, Amari? Is this who you are or it’s all an act?

A lot of questions run in my head. Does she somehow know the truth that I am not poor? I don’t see how she would know. Brian is the only person who knows the truth.

Maybe she is really this kind, acceptive woman, who looks beyond the superficial things. Or maybe she is really a good actor. I don’t trust my judgement these days. Not when the people I trusted the most tried to kill me, and others deserted me.

I don’t know when I drifted off to sleep. I am woken up by a banging noise from the bathroom.

I quickly get on my wheelchair and rush out to investigate when I hear my wife cursing.

“What are you doing?”

She peeps out of the bathroom wearing an overall with a tool belt around her waist. Lord, she is hot!

“Don’t come close!” she warns. “The floor is still wet,” she adds.

That is when I notice that there is now a slope where there was a step to the shower. I can manage to push my wheelchair inside when it’s all dry.

“You are doing this for me?” I ask with a lump in my throat, and she shrugs her shoulders as if this is nothing.

“Why?”

“Why what?”

She genuinely looks surprised by my question.

“Why are you so cool about all this, Amari?”

I have been on the wheelchair for four months now, but no one has been this kind and considerate.

“You are my husband. We vowed to be there for each other in sickness and in health.”

She says this like it is a fact I should know about. Like it is an unbreakable law.

“You were tricked into making those vows,” I remind her.

“But I did,” she says and disappears inside.

“I heard something falling. Are you okay?”

“Yeah. I dropped the cupboard.”

“What are you doing in there?”

“You will see.”

Now I am really curious to know what she is up to so early in the morning. I am touched when I get into the shower and find all the cupboards at my height.

“I am trying to come up with a solution for the tap,” she proudly tells me while I look at, amazed and shocked by the compassion.

Something in me flips. I don’t know if it is knowing that I have someone who will stand by me through anything or discovering that I never knew what humanity meant until now. Hell, I never knew how serious other people take the marriage vows.

We are having breakfast when someone knocks and an old woman probably in her late fifties walks in.

“Morning, Mrs Gail. Is everything okay?” Amari asks with a concerned voice.

“Yes, Dear. Thank you for the soup when I had flu last week, and I am so sorry about your mother.”

Amari nods and blinks back her tears. She has not spoken much about her mother.

“Thank you. This is Nathan, my husband.”

The old woman flashes me a warm smile.

“Of course. I did not believe it when I saw it on the news last night.”

I guess the whole world knows about our marriage now.

“Hello Nathan. I must say, you look nothing like you did on television. You clean so well,” she continues, turning all her attention turning to me. I can’t help noticing that, Like Amari, she does not look disgusted by me.

“Thank you, Ma’am.”

She places her hand over my shoulder. “You are a very lucky man, but I must warn you: you are not going to be very popular around here for snatching her,” she warns, and I narrow my eyes and process her words.

“Mrs Gail?” Amari questions with a serious tone. I get the feeling that she is trying to cut the old lady short.

Mrs Gail lets out a sigh. “The hospital called, Dear. They will not release your mother’s body until the bill is settled.”

Amari nods her head and thanks the old lady, who promises to visit me when Amari is away. Even that makes me frown.

“How much is it?” I ask the woman who seems miles away in her thoughts.

“I don’t know, a hundred thousand maybe.”

I hold her hand and caresses it. “What are we going to do?”

She looks at me as if surprised by my question.

“I am hoping that uncle will settle the bill since he did not have to pay for the operation. I will go and see him today.”

“I will come with you.”

I saw a different side of Thomas and his family yesterday. I am not comfortable with her facing them alone.

She frantically shakes her head. “They are very mean. I don’t want you to be exposed to that.”

I am once again touched by her compassion.

“I know. I appreciate you protecting me, but we are in this together. I am coming with you.”

“Here comes the peasants,” Ella smirks and backs away from us as if we are contagious the moment we walk in.

We are greeted by insults and animosity I cannot comprehend. I have been here so many times before and always received the best of receptions. Ella and her mother fussed so much when I visited, but today they can’t even address me by my name.

“We don’t mean to disturb your peace. I promise that I will never come here again if you just settle the hospital bill,” Amari gets straight to the point.

“What bill? Are you crazy? Did you mistake us for charity?” Thomas smirks while his wife inspects her artificial nails and pretends as if we are not even there.

“Uncle, you promised to pay for mom’s operation. This amount is much less than what you would have paid. Please,” Amari pleads, her every word pulling on my heart. She does not deserve any of this.

“Our agreement was for the operation. Your mother, like the failure she always was, failed to wait and died before that. I don’t owe you anything,” Thomas says coldly.

I see my wife wince with his every word, and I can’t take it anymore.

“Cut the crap, Thomas. You were never going to pay for that operation. The hospital informed you of her mother’s passing an hour before the wedding and you said nothing,” I finally snap, and he goes ballistic and orders the guards to throw us out.

“I am sorry, I could not take him talking to you and about your mother like that.”

She flashes me a weak smile.

“Thank you for standing up me. No one has ever done that for me before.”

My heart break for her. I wish I could hold her in my arms and hide her from this world’s cruelty. I hold her hand instead.

“I may have nothing, but we are in this together. I will find a way to settle the bill. I will reach out to old acquaintances.”